Investments Budget #
Your investment budget is determined by your Finance attribute, except for the first season and for interim GMs. The budget is defined in points, which you can then allocate to the various available investments.
A limit on hockey investments is also established according to your Finance attribute.
See the table below to find your budget based on your Finance attribute value and the type of player evolution (real or virtual).
| Finance Attribute | Investment Budget (Real) | Hockey Budget (Real) |
|---|---|---|
| Season 1 / Interim | 40 | 30 |
| 50 | 30 | 15 |
| 55 | 32 | 18 |
| 60 | 34 | 21 |
| 65 | 36 | 24 |
| 70 | 38 | 27 |
| 75 | 40 | 30 |
| 80 | 42 | 30 |
| 85 | 44 | 30 |
| 90 | 46 | 30 |
| 95 | 48 | 30 |
| 100 | 50 | 30 |
Formulas
Investment Budget (Real): 30 + 0.4 × (FIN – 50)
Hockey Budget (Real): 15 + 0.6 × (FIN – 50), capped at 30
Hockey Investments
Hockey-related investments directly affect your team’s on-ice performance:
- Infirmary: Speeds up recovery for injured players.
- Fitness Center: Speeds up recovery for players with condition above 80.
- Travel: Reduces the negative momentum effect of consecutive road games.
Contract Negotiations
- Improves the value of offers to coaches
- provides percentage discounts on player contract negotiations.
Important: Once you make your first contract offer to a player agent, this investment becomes locked.
Investment Summary
Example of Investments
- Each investment level is worth 1 Finance point.
- Initial allocation of 23 free investment points granted by the owner.
| Hockey Investments | 18 pts (max 30 pts) |
|---|---|
| Contract Negotiation Investment | 10 pts |
| Total Invested | 28 pts |
| Free Investments (budget – 25 pts) | 23 pts |
| Finance Point Cost | 5 pts |
| Investment Grade | 20 / 25 |
FIN Note / 25
In this example, the GM would earn 20 points toward their Finance grade out of a maximum of 25.
Respecting the Payroll Budget #
Your payroll budget is not a strict cap, but you will be graded on your ability to stay within it.
If your Finance attribute from the previous season is below 70, an additional restriction applies.
This budget is based on your team’s Revenue-Generating Capacity (RGC), the league’s average RGC, the league’s average payroll (legacy method), the league salary cap, and your starting payroll.
A bonus or penalty is applied depending on your Finance attribute:
| Finance Attribute | Bonus/Penalty |
|---|---|
| 100 | +3% |
| 90-99 | +2% |
| 80-89 | +1% |
| 70-79 | 0% |
| 60-69 | -1% |
| 50-59 | -2% |
| < 50 | -3% |
Salary Cap Details and Calculations #
Example values (vary by league):
| Element | Value |
|---|---|
| Salary Cap | 65.6M$ |
| Salary Cap Limit | 70.6M$ |
| Payroll Budget | 64.7M$ |
Salary Cap Limit #
If you exceed the salary cap limit, you will not be able to save your player management changes.
By default, the salary cap limit is the league cap + 7.5%. Check Rule R2.1 for conditions under which a player can be suspended for exceeding the salary cap. This value is independent of the owner’s limit and may vary from league to league.
If your Finance attribute from the previous season is below 70, your limit will be lower than the default.
For Season 1 and interim GMs, the default limit applies.
See below table
| Previous Season FIN | Limit |
|---|---|
| <= 54 | Salary Cap + 0% |
| 55 à 59 | Salary Cap +1.5% |
| 60 à 64 | Salary Cap +3% |
| 65 à 69 | Salary Cap + 6% |
| Season 1 / Interim GM / 70+ FIN | Default (Salary Cap + 7.5%) |
Payroll Management Results #
| Element | Value |
|---|---|
| Final or estimated payroll | 49M$ |
| Penalties | 3.5M$ |
| Final payroll + penalties | 52.5M$ |
| Payroll Grade | 75 / 75 pts |
Penalties
Some decisions negatively impact the owner, as they directly affect his finances:
- Buying out a player or coach contract
- Salary cap/floor violations
- Paying a contract 100% in the farm club
- Money given as compensation (Type 2 hostile offer)
These amounts are added to your final payroll.
Payroll Grade Calculation
Your payroll grade is equal to the maximum weighting (75), minus 1 point for each $196.8K over your budget (including penalties if applicable).
For example, if your final payroll is 65.6M$ and your budget was 63.6M$, you have a difference of 2M$ between the two, which represents 10 slices of 196.8K$, or 10 points. Your payroll score would be 65/75.
Formula
Result = 75 – ((Final Payroll – Budget) ÷ 196.8K)
Payroll Budget Calculation #
Your payroll budget is calculated as follows:
Budget = (Salary Cap × 96%) × (1 + Bonus/Penalty + (CGR – Avg CGR) ÷ (10 × Avg CGR))
If the calculated budget is lower than your starting payroll minus 7.5% of the cap, then that lower threshold becomes your budget.
Example
- Salary Cap: $60M (7.5% = $4.5M)
- Starting Payroll: $58M
- Calculated Budget: $52M
Since this is more than $4.5M below your starting payroll, the budget is adjusted to $53.5M ($58M – $4.5M).
| Element | Value |
|---|---|
| Salary Cap * 96% | 63M$ |
| Bonus/Penalty: FIN attribute | 2% |
| Bonus/Penalty: Cost of tickets | 2% |
| -1 FIN for each 0.3% team payroll over budget | 196.8K$ |
| Average CGR | 138 |
| CGR Sharing | 0 |
| Your CGR | 120 |
| Starting Payroll | 59.6M$ |
Average CGR #
What is CGR?
CGR determines a payroll budget that makes sense for your market and team. The higher your RGC, the higher your payroll budget.
CGR Calculation
| CGR | Formula |
|---|---|
| Total CGR | City CGR+ Arena CGR + Team CGR + CGR Sharing |
| City CGR | (Economy + Population)/5 + Popularity/4 – Climate/8 + 5 if in the US |
| Arena CGR | (Bronze seats + 1.5 x Silver seats + 2 x Gold seats)/3000 + Luxury Box/4 |
| Team CGR | 2 x Investment Pts + 8 x Legends + 4 x Super Stars + 4 x Future Legends + Prestige |
| CGR Sharing | (Average RGC before sharing - RGC before sharing) x Transfer percentage (set by R6.1) |
City CGR and Arena CGR are outside your control. Focus on Team CGR to improve your ability to generate revenue.
City CGR Calculation
| Element | Value |
|---|---|
| Economy | 63 |
| Population | 76 |
| Popularity | 67 |
| Climate | 69 |
| Country | United Stats? Yes |
| City CGR | 41 |
Arena CGR calculation
| Element | Value |
|---|---|
| Bronze Seats | 14293 |
| Silver Seats | 3999 |
| Gold Seats | 1706 |
| Boxes | 35 |
| Arena CGR | 17 |
Team CGR Calculation
| Element | Qty |
|---|---|
| Investment Points | 20 |
| Legends (90+ OV) | 0 |
| Superstars (80-89 OV) | 3 |
| Future Legends (90+ PO, < 79 OV) | 1 |
| Prestige | 6 |
| Team CGR | 62 |
CGR Variation
Your CGR can fluctuate throughout the season depending on the players you acquire or trade (superstars and legends). As a result, your payroll budget, weightings, and final score may also vary slightly.
Starting Payroll
The starting payroll serves as a reference point to compare the state of your payroll over a full season.
This value is set once the entry draft is completed for the first season. For subsequent seasons, it is calculated as the total salaries paid across the 82 games of the previous season.
